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What the second lawsuit was about
The dispute concerned the brief bedroom scene in Zeffirelli’s 1968 film, which starred Hussey and Whiting as teenagers. The actors accepted the scene’s inclusion in the original film, but later alleged that their consent was conditioned on its presentation in a manner approved by Zeffirelli. They said the 2023 Criterion release included photographs taken after filming and images digitally enhanced in ways they considered lewd or embarrassing. Those were the plaintiffs’ allegations, not findings that the release had been altered without authorization.
Hussey and Whiting’s second lawsuit, filed in February 2024, focused on the Criterion release. It included claims involving unlawful use of intimate images and performers’ rights. The defendants disputed that the release contained the changes the plaintiffs described.
How the two lawsuits differ
| Case | When and against whom | Focus and outcome |
|---|---|---|
| First lawsuit | Filed against Paramount on December 30, 2022 | Centered on the filming and use of the bedroom scene. The case was dismissed in 2023. |
| Second lawsuit | Filed in February 2024 against Paramount and other respondents | Focused on images in the 2023 Criterion release. The trial court dismissed it in October 2024; the Court of Appeal affirmed on April 1, 2026. |
In the first complaint, the actors alleged they had been told they would wear flesh-colored undergarments and that camera positioning would prevent nudity from being shown, but were then directed to perform nude. The 2023 dismissal was a separate ruling from the later case. Courthouse News reported that the judge said the plaintiffs had not shown the film was conclusively illegal and noted a procedural issue involving certificates of merit.
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Why the second lawsuit was dismissed
The trial court’s October 2024 ruling
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Holly J. Fujie granted the defendants’ anti-SLAPP motion. Anti-SLAPP procedures allow a defendant to seek early dismissal of claims arising from protected activity, subject to the plaintiff showing the claims have the required minimal merit. The court found that the claims arose from protected distribution of a film.
The judge rejected the claim under the UK Performers Rights Act because that act had been repealed in 1989. For the remaining claims, the court found the plaintiffs could not show a lack of consent to inclusion and distribution of the scene, including in the 2023 release. It also concluded their conduct over subsequent decades supported implied ratification. Separately, the judge found no significant visible improvement in the scene to the naked eye compared with earlier versions.
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In its October 21, 2024 report, TheWrap quoted Fujie: “A comparison of the 2023 release with the prior versions shows no significant visible improvement in the film, particularly in the Bedroom Scene, to the naked eye.”
What Paramount and the other respondents argued about the release
In their motion and the appellate record, the respondents argued that the Criterion edition used a 2016 restoration file created while Zeffirelli was alive. Paramount’s filing said it delivered Criterion a ProRes file of that restoration in September 2019. The respondents also argued that the Criterion Blu-ray’s 1920 × 1080 resolution matched earlier digital releases and the 2013 Blu-ray, and that the relevant scene had not been edited or enhanced in the way the plaintiffs alleged. These are descriptions of the defendants’ evidence and arguments.
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The appeal and its limits
On April 1, 2026, the California Court of Appeal affirmed the dismissal. It concluded that the undisputed admissible evidence showed the Criterion release had the same content and resolution as prior approved releases, without edits or relevant enhancements. On that record, the court upheld the trial court’s conclusion that the plaintiffs had not shown the minimal merit needed to defeat the anti-SLAPP motion.
The appellate opinion is expressly marked not to be published in the Official Reports. Its disposition says: “The court’s order is affirmed. Respondents shall recover their costs on appeal.” The ruling resolves this case; it should not be read as a general determination that every later use of intimate images, or every similar film release, is lawful.
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Timeline of the dispute
- 1968: Zeffirelli’s Romeo and Juliet is released.
- December 30, 2022: Hussey and Whiting file their first action against Paramount.
- 2023: The first action is dismissed. In February, Paramount and Criterion release the home-video edition later challenged in the second case.
- February 2024: The actors file the second lawsuit, centered on the Criterion release.
- October 2024: Judge Fujie grants the defendants’ anti-SLAPP motion and dismisses the second case.
- December 2024: Hussey dies at age 73.
- January 2026: Hussey’s husband and successor in interest, David Glen Eisley, is substituted in the appeal.
- April 1, 2026: The Court of Appeal affirms the dismissal in an unpublished opinion.
What the outcome does—and does not—establish
The second lawsuit ended with the trial court’s dismissal and the appellate court’s affirmance, based on the claims and evidence before those courts. Their findings addressed consent to the scene’s inclusion and distribution, the plaintiffs’ later conduct, and whether the 2023 release showed a significant visible difference from earlier versions. They should not be recast as proof that the actors’ account of what they were told during filming was false.
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